Terje:
> The ISU started its limitation policy long before the IOC came to
> think of it, and they apply them to their own ISU championships and
> World Cup as wel as the Olympics.

Well, yeah, but your remark was that "speed skating is hurting itself by
limiting its participation (...) to pursuit a dream of live TV coverage", which
is may be true for the other competitions, but since the ISU allows more
competitors into the Olympics than the WSD, that's a rather odd statement to
make, right?

However, qualifying times may not be the best way to pick a maximum number of
competitors. Why not, if the quotum for a distance is 40, pick the 40 fastest
skaters, rather than all skaters that have met some limit that will probably be
met by some 40 skaters? Or pick the top 40 in the World Cup ranking, to exclude
high altitude rinks from the equasion and increase WC participation?